


The Boy in the Sunglasses

by ReeLeeV



Series: HW Bingo 2020 [3]
Category: Monsta X (Band)
Genre: Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Heroes AU, Hyungwon Bingo, M/M, Tags May Change, greek myths au
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-31
Updated: 2020-07-31
Packaged: 2021-03-05 22:35:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,124
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25642888
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ReeLeeV/pseuds/ReeLeeV
Summary: When Jooheon is given his graduation assignment from the Academy of Heroics, he doesn’t expect to be given something so seemingly impossible… nor does he expect it to be so life-changing.
Relationships: Chae Hyungwon/Lee Jooheon
Series: HW Bingo 2020 [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1858825
Comments: 6
Kudos: 9
Collections: Hyungwon Bingo: Round 2





	The Boy in the Sunglasses

**Author's Note:**

> My third and final submission for Hyungwon Bingo! Square: Medusa!

Hyungwon sighs through his nose, staring at his own reflection in the mirror. It’s in moments like this he doesn’t quite understand why he’s been given this lot in life. It isn’t as if he’s a bad person, and he can’t help who his mother was or what was done to her. In fact, she’d already been killed long ago, so why does he have to continue the curse? Why must he continue to pay for something he had nothing to do with? 

The constant hissing in his ears grows a shade more agitated, and he takes another deep breath before patting at the vipers hanging from his follicles in lieu of hair. The son of Medusa puts on his enchanted shades, gifted to him by one of his aunts upon her retirement. They’re said to be enchanted by Hecate herself to ward off the effects of the gorgon curse so that Hyungwon can live at least a semi-normal life… Or, as as semi-normal as it gets when most are scared to even walk the same halls as you.

There’s a knock at his door, and his best friend pokes his head in with his eyes closed. Minhyuk, son of Circe.

“Snake boy, get a move on!” he calls impishly, earning a groan from Hyungwon in return. Hyungwon knows he means nothing by the nickname, but if  _ any _ one else were to call him as such they’d find themselves frozen faster than they can blink. “It’s the big ceremony today!”

“Yeah, yeah,” Hyungwon sighs, petting back his snakes as they grow anxious once more, reflecting his own shift in mood. The ceremony… the day he’s given his graduation assignment. He’s honestly dreading it. If he could’ve just skipped the Academy of Cursed Arts altogether he would’ve, but his mother had insisted before she went into hiding for the last time.

He only hopes his assignment isn’t anything too gruesome.

“Assignment day!” Jooheon echoes as he walks with his friends towards the ceremony hall. “What do you guys think you’re gonna get?? I hope I get assigned a quest to retrieve some ancient amulet, oh! Or maybe some blessed harp?”

“I bet it’s something so cool they’ll have to take you to the back room,” Changkyun snickers, bumping Jooheon supportively on the shoulder. Jooheon chuckles along, trapping Changkyun in the crook of his arm and burying his fist into the maknae’s hair. Of course, Jooheon will take anything so long as it isn’t anything to keep him from home long enough to miss Changkyun’s own assignment day… It’s bad enough Hyunwoo and Hoseok are still off chasing after the legendary Pegasus to rebridle him and couldn’t make it back in time for today.

“You  _ will _ call every day, won’t you hyung?” Changkyun asks suddenly, grounding Jooheon for a moment with an air of sobriety. Jooheon smiles affectionately, releasing his hold on Changkyun and nodding. 

“Of course, Kkungie,” he promises, hugging Changkyun as they walk. “I promise. Besides, I’ll probably make it back in a few days. You know they won’t give me anything  _ too _ dangerous. It wouldn’t make sense. I’ve always been a hero of arts, not of battles.”

“I don’t know,” Changkyun sighs, his eyes growing a bit guarded. He turns his head to watch the walls as they walk, staring distractedly at the portraits of great heroes before them. “That’s what we always said of Hoseok-hyung, but they tossed him in with Hyunwoo-hyung’s quest… I don’t want them assigning you more than you can handle and putting you in danger.”

“They won’t,” Jooheon assures him, squeezing his shoulders tightly. “They  _ want  _ us to succeed, remember? They wouldn't give us something we couldn’t handle… There’s always a bigger plan in the works, even if we don’t see what it could be at first.”

“If you say so…” 

Jooheon lets it drop after that, the doors to the auspicious ceremony hall propped open to reveal the room inside. A grand, high-ceilinged room with glowing white walls and golden banners hanging from the beams. Jooheon feels a bit breathless, having been here so many times to witness upperclassmen's assignments… It feels so much more nerve wracking when it’s your turn.

Jooheon lets go of Changkyun as he makes his way towards the stairs, having known when to get here. It’s always best to come early, when most of the others of his class haven’t stopped by yet. That way, there’s no waiting time, no line. He stops at the top of the stairs, bowing respectfully to the elder men in golden robes holding spears and scrolls. He bows respectfully, heart beating hard in his chest. This is it. This is what he’s been working so hard for. He only hopes his mother and father are proud of his assignment when they hear, that he’s able to prove to everyone this was well worth it. 

“Lee Jooheon,” the one on the left says, staring down at him with ancient eyes. Jooheon gulps thickly, bowing again in confirmation. The elderly man holds out his hand, a scroll materializing there, and he hands it to Jooheon. Jooheon takes it, his own palms starting to sweat… 

_ This is it, this is it, this is it, _ he thinks repeatedly. His life as a hero is really about to begin, officially begin. All it’ll take is this one little task, this small thing… and…

“What?” Jooheon can’t help but ask, his heart plummeting from his chest and down to Tartarus itself. He looks up to the elders, the sweat beading at his temples in an instant. “Are you sure?”

“Very,” the five say in unison. Another boy stops at his side and bows, resolutely taking the attention away from Jooheon and to him. Jooheon gulps thickly, stepping numbly down the stairs to where Changkyun awaits. Changkyun’s excited smile falters at seeing how pale Jooheon has turned in under a second, how queasy he seems. Changkyun’s brow furrows, and Jooheon can only offer out the scroll. He can’t bring himself to think it, much less say it.

“It is with greatest acclaim that we the elders,” Changkyun mumbles aloud, “proclaim that Lee Jooheon’s final assignment from this esteemed institution shall be… oh.  _ Oh no _ … hyung.” Jooheon snatches the scroll back, unable to bring himself to meet the heartbreak that’s sure to be in Changkyun’s eyes. Almost like his friend is already mourning him.

The words glare up at him from the paper like a curse, like the fates themselves have decided to play this cruel trick on him.

_ Lee Jooheon’s final assignment from this esteemed institution shall be to kill the last living son of the gorgon Medusa: Chae Hyungwon _ .

Yeah. He for sure is all kinds of dead… Goodbye graduation, hello Underworld.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for every kudo/comment!!!!!! They're what fuel me to keep writing! Follow me on [Twitter](https://twitter.com/ReeLeeV1) to scream about MX with me!


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